The courts
senior status
Semi-retirement for a federal judge who meets an age and service threshold. They keep the office and a reduced caseload, and their seat opens for a new appointment.
In full
Under the Rule of 80, a judge whose age plus years of service reaches eighty, with at least fifteen years of service and age sixty-five, may take senior status. Because it creates a vacancy without a resignation, the timing of these decisions is itself a factor in how judicial appointments are distributed across administrations.
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A plain-language explanation for civic education, not legal advice. When in doubt, the official source named above controls.